1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a device for the aquatic farming of molluscs and in particular mussels.
Historically, like other marine life, mussels have been harvested from the wild, but diminishing stocks, greater demand and the need for a high quality produce have resulted in the growth of a mussel aquaculture industry.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Existing mollusc farming devices include a cage-like enclosure with a series of trays, which are seeded with immature molluscs. The enclosure is lowered into the water and left in place until the molluscs mature.
A much simpler and less expensive method of forming mussels is to seed a weighted rope, which is lowered into the water. The mussels remain attached to the rope as they develop, and are easily harvested by winching up the rope and feeding it through a device for stripping the mussels from the rope. This approach to mussel farming suffers from two serious drawbacks: firstly, mussels are sensitive to changes in water temperature and may detach from the rope if the temperature varies too much over the growing season, and secondly, the small surface area of a rope limits the number of mussels which can be grown on one rope. A device that solves both of these problems would significantly increase the yield and result in a positive economic benefit.
One attempt to increase the yield of a mussel farming rope is disclosed by Canadian Patent Application 2,130,999 (Hitchins et al) published on Sep. 2, 1993. The inventors propose a funnel-shaped, mesh net to be placed at discrete intervals along a rope to provide support and habitat for the mussels. Several obvious problems are anticipated with the use of such a net, including difficulty in attaching the nets to the rope, and the strong likelihood of entanglements.
An object of the present invention is to provide a device to be used with the rope method of farming mussels which will increase crop yields by providing a greater surface area for attachment and growth of the mussels.
Another object of the invention is to provide a device that will reduce the loss of mussels by detachment from the mussel rope due to water temperature.
A further object of the invention is to provide a device, which is easy to use and to attach to a mussel farming rope.
Accordingly, the invention relates to a mollusc aquaculture device comprising a planar body; an aperture in said body for receiving a rope and a clip in said aperture connected to said body for securing the body at a fixed location on the rope whereby a rope can be inserted through the body into engagement with the clip to affix the body to the rope.